FUNeral
FUNeral is the fourth studio album from American singer-songwriter Sexy Star. The album was released June 13, 2011 and to date, the album has peaked at #10 and has sold over 100,000 copies, certified Silver. Announcement The albums press release was posted on 28th March which included the album title, plus news on both the buzz single and the albums official lead single. Its been 7 months since the release of Sexy Star's last studio album REDRUM which spawned two singles; the top 5 hit "Hollywood Is Dead" and the top 3 smash "Death Dance" which gave Star his highest peaking single to date. The album went onto sell close to 440,000 copies and even though potential was there and praise was high, Star decided to move on from the album. Now after his break away from music, Star is back with his buzz single "You Make Me Wanna Die" which is released 11th April, receiving the on air, on sale treatment as an introduction to fans on what the album has to offer. The albums official lead single "Hang Me, Don't Hang with Me" will be released this June along with the album FUNeral. Star describes FUNeral as "murder pop", sugary sweet pop beats with dark, violent lyrics. "It's amazing, I'm amazing, you'll all see that with the album... it's the album you listen to when you feel suicidal, but I make it all glamorous and sexy, it's like the sister album to REDRUM... but a million times better, there's tons of progression" he commented when asked on the sound. "You Make Me Wanna Die" will receive its world premiere here on SexyStar.com next Monday. That week, Star will be going on a promotional tour to support the rush release of the single. "I'm a man but more of a woman than any bitch in the industry, I also come equipped with god-like music" is what Sexy Star said when asked on a way to introduce himself to newcomers. * However, plans soon changed as "Hang Me, Don't Hang with Me" was scrapped for "Love Letters + Stab Wounds". Promotion * Ahead of the albums release, Star's official website revealed a blurred out version of the album cover, as well as an exclusive track taken from the album, titled "Bleed It All Out" which received praise for its dark lyrics. * Sexy Star launched the "I'm Bringing Sexy Back" campaign which gave facts on his past releases to introduce himself to newcomers who were unaware of Star at the time. * Album clips were uploaded to Star's official website weeks ahead of the album release. * In support of the album, Sexy Star will be headlining the FUNeral World Tour starting September 2, 2011. Critical reception FUNeral received mostly positive reviews from critics, becoming his most critically acclaimed album to date. Allmusic gave the album four out of five stars, mentioning "every song gives the listener a different emotion as Star takes fans on a rollercoaster journey full of chilling, depressing mid-tempos and upbeat, edgy club tracks." BBC Music gave the album a mixed review, complimenting the quirkiness of tracks "FUNeral" and "Cremation Vacation", but then noted that the "more serious tracks bring the albums quality down". The Guardian gave the album four out of five stars, saying that Star's lyrical content had "greatly improved" compared to previous attempts, also adding "the production is top-quality and fresh, and there's a track on there for every type of Sexy Star fan." Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B+ and commented on its slight improve compared to REDRUM, adding the album was "short but free from filler." Rolling Stone gave three stars and commented "Star takes his artistic credibility up a notch, but when you look deeper, it's a playful, meaningless album dressed up as something serious." DigitalSpy gave the album three and a half stars and said every song was "catchy and each song had its own identity." Slang Magazine were less positive, giving the album two stars and calling it a "desperate bid for attention with its morbid, unfriendly lyrics." Daily Mirror also gave the album two stars and said it was "a sibling to REDRUM, but one that was no better, or no worse." Chart performance The album debuted at #10 on the UK Albums Chart with sales of 38,228, his lowest album debut aside from his Christmas release A Very Merry Pink Christmas. Singles * Buzz single "You Make Me Wanna Die" was released ahead of the official lead single and album release on April 11, 2011. The single peaked at #23 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Star's lowest charting single release to date. * Lead single "Love Letters + Stab Wounds" was released June 13, 2011, the same date as the album. The single debuted and peaked at #8, but was not certified. * The second single to be released from the album will be "Cremation Vacation" and will be released September 12, 2011 as a new single mix which features Beastette. Notes * Song "Hang Me, Don't Hang with Me" was originally scheduled to be released as the albums lead single after an album press release was revealed. However, this was later cancelled in favour for "Love Letters + Stab Wounds" which served as the albums official lead single. * The album marks Star's first record to have all songs written by himself. Track listing Artwork Image: FUNeralcover.png|'Front cover' Image: FUNeralBack.png|'Back cover' Image: FUNERAL1.png|'Inlay #1' Image: FUNERAL2.png|'Inlay #2' Image: FUNERAL3.png|'Inlay #3' Image: FUNERAL4.png|'Inlay #4' Image: FUNERAL5.png|'Inlay #5' Image: FUNERAL6.png|'Inlay #6' Image: FUNERAL7.png|'Inlay #7'